CHICAGO (CBS) — Mayor Rahm Emanuel wants to crack down on motorists who abuse disability placards, illegally parking in disabled spots or parking all day for free at metered locations.

“The abuse of the disability placards has gone on for far too long,” said Mayor Emanuel. “These reforms are about preserving legal on-street parking for motorists with disabilities and this ordinance sends a clear message that abuse of placards will not be tolerated in the city of Chicago.”

Under the proposed ordinance, the City would increase fines and authorize the Chicago Police Department to impound vehicles as an additional penalty for using fraudulent placards or misusing a placard of an authorized user.

Specifically, the ordinance would:

Penalize violators who display a false, stolen or altered disability placard would be subject to fines from $500- $1,000; and

Any authorized owner of a disability placard who allows another person to use the placard illegally would be subject to a $200 fine.

In recent years, the problem has become worse due to the availability of fraudulent and altered parking placards for purchase over the Internet, the mayor’s office said in a news release.

The fraudulent use of placards also negatively impacts businesses. When individuals fraudulently use disabled parking placards all day, it reduces turnover and parking spot available to potential customers.

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